Sign Of A Vanishing Species Boaters Cautioned To Steer Clear Of Manatees In Tomoka, Tributaries

August 9, 1988|By Cindy Schreuder of The Sentinel Staff

ORMOND BEACH — New signs along the Tomoka River and its tributaries caution boaters to watch out for manatees, an endangered marine mammal that uses the area during warm weather.

State and local officials posted 18 signs along the river and its tributaries Saturday. The signs were the first step toward increased protection for manatees in the area.

Officials in Ormond Beach are trying to get Thompson and Strickland creeks, Tomoka River tributaries, declared manatee protection zones where boat traffic would be curtailed.

''Despite the rain and a few other setbacks, we got the signs up,'' said John Baker, a planner for the city. Florida Department of Natural Resources officials helped place the signs.

The signs, provided free by the Save-the-Manatee Club of Maitland, include a drawing of the animal and the words, ''Caution, Manatee Area.''

Baker said he hopes the signs will encourage people driving motorboats to slow down. Boat propellers can seriously injure, and even kill, the slow- moving manatees.

The creeks are a popular recreation area for boaters, especially on the weekends. But the waters also are favored by manatees during the summer. In recent weeks residents have seen groups of more than a dozen manatees playing together in the water.

Despite the signs, Baker said some people will continue to speed down the creeks, oblivious to the animals just below the surface.

''It's sort of discouraging when we're tacking them signs up and the people come flying right by,'' Baker said.

But he added: ''I do think there are people who are conscientious enough. Maybe they're a minority, I don't know. But some people will slow down.

''This is an incremental step toward what we are after, which is an enforced idle or no-wake zone,'' he said.